So How Is the Cigar Made?

The best Cuban Cigars are made completely by hand, and by the best torcedors in the world.

The torcedors sit and roll the cigars in the Gallera (the cigar manufacturing hall). They are ranked according to their expertise and experience, and according to that they make the various cigar. The higher the torcedor rank, the bigger the cigar he makes. The torcedor is equipped only with a flat wooden plank, a knife, a guillotine for cutting the cigar's foot to it's proper length, and a jar of vegetable glue. but these are only secondary to most significant and important tool - his 10 fingers!

The torcedor takes the filler leaves, squeezes them in his hand, and folds-rolls-presses them lengthwise to a bunch, which ensures the flow of air and smoke throughout. This technique is called "Libro" (book), because if the cigar is cut along it's length its leaves will open like a book. This fold-roll-press can only be hand made.

The Master Blender

Every cigar aficionado will tell you that its quality depends mainly on its filler blend. In a high quality blend the leaves match and complement each other. Its a perfect synergy where the sum of the blend is greater than the sum of its components. The great blends of the "Cohiba" Cuban cigar were created by the legendary master blender Eduardo Rivera even before Fidel Castro fell in love with them.

The blend determines the quality of the cigar's flavor and it's character. The blend is called "Ligada" by the manufacturer's, since it is made in the "Liga" - the blending department creating the blend and deciding on the blend's composition.

The ratio between the different leave quantities making the cigar blend determines its flavor - Full Bodied, Mild, etc. If the master blender wants a more full odied cigar he will use more of the Seco leaves, and lighter ones will have less Seco and more Ligero and Volado leaves. The thin and small cigar usually contain no Seco leaves.

Cigar smoking is as enjoyable as the quality of the cigar. Don't forget to cut it and light it properly (we'll talk about these in future posts), and keep it in a cigar humidor for an extended life and flavor (you can find some quality humidors here).

How To Smoke a Cigar - The Filler

The filler is the cigar's third part, making it the cigar's body. Its made of whole tobacco leaves, arranged lengthwise, so that the smoke knows "from where its coming and where its going", and its volume is even throughout. Like good drinks, cognacs, whiskeys and wines, the filler is a blend of different leaves. Traditionally, the filler is a blend of three leaves:

"Seco" Leaves - Dry leaves that give the cigar it's main aroma and delicate flavors, or as the aficionados call it "Sabor y Aroma"

"Volado" Leaves - delicate and thin leaves, sweet and dry, contributing mainly to the cigar's volume and "Combustabilidad" - it's burning quality and evenness.

"Ligero" Leaves - even though the word means light, bright, these are dark, bitter, full of aromatic oils, giving the cigar it's strong and emphasized flavors, its "Fortaleza" - its power.

How To Smoke a Cigar - The Binder

The binder is the cigar's work horse. Its role is important, but it is invisible. Its the second defense line underneath the wrapper. It is a thick, aromatic leave rolled around the filler, binding together the filling leaves, hence its name. Leaves used as binders are pretty rough, strong and flexible. The center vain is removed from the leaf, and the leaf's two parts are used as the binder.

As a matter of fact, the perfect binder performs so well that after it is used to bind the filler leaves it is possible to smoke the cigar even without the wrapper. It will not be as pretty, it will miss the wrapper flavor, but it will look like a cigar and will smoke like one.

How To Smoke a Cigar - The Cigar's Three Parts

Looking at the previous posts may seam like this blog is a tribute to Compay Segundo. Even though I admire him for his personality and contribution to the world of Cuban music, that is not the case. So let's get down to the real thing - how to smoke a cigar and make the most of it.

This will be the first of three posts dealing with the cigar's three parts. Let me make one clear distinction first - there are three types of cigars: hand made ones, machine made ones, and ones made part by hand and part by machine. I will only deal with hand made ones.

Now to the cigar's three parts:

The Wrapper

The Binder

The Filler

The Wrapper

The wrapper's leaf is the cigar's "crown leaf". There is no good cigar without a perfect wrapper. The perfect wrapper is made from the best of tobacco leaves. It must be like an Olympic gymnast – strong, flexible and beautiful. The strength is necessary to hold the whole cigar and the flexibility is required so that the wrapper can withstand the fille's volume change with humidity. And the beauty is obvious... The wrapper plays a central part in ensuring the cigar will burn evenly and consistently.

Since the wrapper leaves are so important to ensure its quality, they are grown under the utmost conditions. They are called "Corojos", after the plants that are chosen to grow the wrapper leaves. They are grown under a gause sunscreen called "Topado", which limit their exposure to the sun and ensure they are smooth, silky, and delicate.

The wrapper determines the look of the cigar, and is a major contributor to its quality, so it is of no surprise that it is the most expensive part of it. The best of wrappers come from Cuba's Vuelta Abajo region in general, and from Don Alejandro Robaina's plants in particular. Quality wrappers are also grown in Ecuador, Cameroon, US (Connecticut) and Costa Rica.

The best wrapper will be smooth to the eye and to the touch. It will look alive, and will have an even color throughout., without any marks. All the cigars from the same box will have the same wrapper color and shade, demonstrating the cigar maker professionalism.

Commemorated With Cigars

The Nicaraguan cigar maker Tabacarela Perdomo manufactures a cigar line named "COMPAY" to honor the Cuba's rich music history and the late Compay Segundo, the legendary musician (the Perdomo family, by the way, originates from Cuba). The "COMPAY" line has four cigars called... you guessed - Buena, Vista, Social, and Club (sounds familiar?).

Compay is a special blend of medium-bodied, vintage Nicaraguan tobaccos in a dark maduro cameron wrapper. They are medium bodied and produce a soft and extremely well balanced smoke. As an avid fan of the music group, I take of my hat to the person who decided to name them. They are available in four classic sizes: "Buena" (4.5 X 52 Robusto); "Vista" (6 X 50 Toro); "Social" (7 X 48 Churchill) and the "Club" (5.75 X 54 Torpedo).

You would think that the Cubans will be the ones to commemorate their beloved son with a high quality cigar, yet they did it with a machine made "Guantanamera Compay", a cigar that I don't believe Compay himself would have smoked. Nick Perdomo, on the other hand, gave Compay what he deserves - a line of excellent quality cigars and great names.

For his 95th birthday, Montecristo issued a special, limited edition of a 1000 Montecristo No. 3 cigars with a special band with Compay's picture. These cigars were not sold at stores, and were given as presents to all the participants in his birthday party at the hotel Nacional in Havana. Compay himself (of coarse...) received 156 of "his" cigars in a special humidor. The Compay cigars became collectibles even before anyone lighted the first one of them. And why Montecristo? Because Compay smoked their cigars almost exclusively. After all, he was one of their torcedores (cigar rollers) for 20 years...

How To Smoke a Cigar

Smoking a cigar may be viewed by most people as the same as smoking a cigarette, yet the cigar aficionado will go out of his/her way tell you otherwise, and not because when you smoke a cigar you do not inhale the smoke, but mainly because of the whole ritual involved, making it a real passion for those who practice it. Knowing how to smoke a cigar makes the whole difference, and turns it into a great pleasure. As the ultimate cigar aficionado, the late comedian George Burns, once said "Happiness? A good cigar, a good meal, a good cigar and a good woman - or a bad woman; it depends on how much happiness you can handle".

The true cigar aficionado will smoke his cigar in a quite, peaceful place, either alone or with some good friends. He/she will take out their favorite cigar from the humidor, massage and caress it if it is a little tight, and cut it at the perfect place, quickly and decisively. It will then be lighted with a long wooden match or butane lighter, and gently blowing at it making sure it is lighted evenly all around. Then comes the best part of smoking it slowly, enhancing the pleasure with a glass of cognac or brandy, enjoying every draw. The true connoisseur will only smoke the cigar to the band, yet many people will enjoy it almost to the end by removing it (the best way to remove it is after you lit and smoked it for a little while, as it will loosen the glue and make it easy to remove).

One of the great cigar aficionados was one of my favorite personalities and a great musician: the Cuban Compay Segundo, a member of the Buena Vista Social Club. He was asked about it when he reached 90, and he said that he was his grandmother favorite grandson, and he will sit next to her since he was five years old and light her cigars for her, hence he smoked cigars for 85 years(!).

Cigar smoking is a true pleasure, and throughout the years it became a symbol of status and class, and for many people it symbolizes a great indulgence which they truly enjoy.